February 05, 2014 - The Wildcat grapplers clinched their eighth straight league title by beating seven teams during the Oakland Activities Association's Red Division championships held at Oxford High School Friday night.

"Eight straight league titles shows consistency in our program," said Head Coach Paul McDevitt. "Many schools have a good year every now and then, but Oxford has been a consistent contender for league, district, regional and state titles for over a decade."

"This is a tribute to the many coaches, wrestlers, parents and supporters that come through the program starting in the youth club, through middle school and into high school," he continued. "We wouldn't have this type of consistent success if it wasn't for all of these programs working in harmony."

Oxford took first place with a team score of 212 points, Clarkston was second with 178. The rest of the teams placed as follows: Rochester, 133; Rochester Adams, 109; Rochester Stoney Creek, 108.5; Farmington, 88.5; Farmington Harrison, 56 and Lake Orion, 50.5.

There were top four finishers in 10 of the 14 weight classes, which included six champions (Jacob Call, 103; Alex Hrisopoulos, 112; Edwin Schlickenmeyer, 135; Wesley Maskill, 171; Ben Line, 215 and Zach Wood, 285), two runners-up (Noah Kinne, 152 and Grant Krause, 189) and two third-place finishers with Collin Campbell, 119 and Peter Economou, 145.

"Our boys wrestled well Friday night. It was a great tournament for us. However, we also saw that Clarkston has really been improving throughout the season and will be a formidable opponent for the regional title and a chance to get back to the team state quarter finals in Battle Creek," McDevitt added. "We will have to bring our A-game from here on out or we could very easily get beat."

The boys currently have a 25-4 record and lead the league with 16 points followed by Clarkston with 14 and Rochester with 12. The boys will take to the mat Feb. 5 at Romeo High School for MHSAA team districts. With a first round bye, Oxford will wrestle the winner between Lake Orion and Romeo.

"We have already defeated both of these teams this season," noted McDevitt. "But if we don't come ready to wrestle, we could get upset."

The boys will then travel to Rochester on Saturday, Feb. 8 for individual districts. The meet will begin at 8 a.m.

McDevitt said they will be "moving some guys around in the lineup."

"Individual districts allows you the opportunity to enter some wrestlers (twice in) certain weight classes. This will give some guys that have worked really hard and done a nice job in a back-up role a chance to shine," he explained. "It will be a difficult decision for the coaching staff to determine who to sit out and who to double-enter though. We have a whole team full of guys that have worked hard and done a nice job (with) what they've been asked to do."

As far as the rest of the season, McDevitt says the goal is to win district and regional titles, then get back to the state quarter finals.

"We also hope our success during the regular season gets us seeded favorably in the tournament giving us an opportunity to get back into the State Semi-Finals where anything can happen."

Trevor graduated with degrees in English and communications from Rochester College. He wrote for his college and LA View newspapers before joining The Clarkston News in May 2007.